His Light
by Kairi Granger
Summary: After defeating Ansem, Riku finds himself back on the Islands with Sora and Kairi, fighting to remember something he knew was important. RikuxXion because they don't have enough. Rated T


**This is the first fanfiction I ever wrote so its not that great. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts...yet**

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His Light

Riku woke up suddenly, those violet blue eyes swimming before his own. The first time that he had had the dream, he thought those eyes belonged to his childhood friend Kairi. But after the last time he had tried to bring the Organization Member XIV to DiZ. He realized that the eyes belonged to her. The girl who only looked like Kairi; Xion.

Riku had been trying to take her and bring her back to DiZ. He said that if the girl was returned to Sora, then maybe he would wake up. Riku didn't know exactly what was so important about this girl, but if it helped Sora, he would do anything. She was just a puppet. To her Organization, to DiZ, and to himself. But after he defeated her, and he looked under her hood, he had been shocked. Her eyes and face looked like Kairi, but her hair was short and black.

"Sora…Kairi…"he thought. "I would give anything just for us to all be together again." He didn't know where Kairi was, but he hoped she was safe. Before he and King Mickey had gotten locked on the other side of the door, he had told Sora to take care of Kairi, but they too had been separated. Sora was asleep, he had been asleep for along time and Riku could only hope that he would wake up.

His mind wandered back to the girl. Namine had suggested that maybe she looked like Kairi because she was made from Sora's memories, and Kairi was Sora's "light", his strongest memory. Riku sat up and put his head in his hands. Visions of the girl, Xion, swirled in his head. DiZ had warned him not to get attached to the Nobody's, they weren't supposed to exist. They didn't deserve to exist. Riku had tried to remember that, but he kept meeting Xion, and the more he saw her, the more he wanted to stay with her.

He liked staying close to her. He made her feel like Kairi used to when he was around her, only with Kairi, the burning in his heart wasn't near the pain he felt when he looked at Xion. Was he falling in love with the Nobody? No, he couldn't be. But all the same, he would rather sit and be with her then do anything else.

DiZ would always ask how his meetings with the girl went. He kept reminding Riku that Xion was needed to wake Sora up. _Like I need reminding_. He stood up and got dressed. He decided to go and talk to her again. _I'll try the clock tower. She's there a lot_.

His guess was right. She was sitting alone on the clock tower. He smiled as she sat eating some sea-salt ice cream. "No one to sit with today?" he teased.

Xion turned to him and a large smile spread across her lips. Riku loved her smile. "Well, you're here right? So I'm not alone." She motioned for him to sit next to her. "So, have you been following me?"

Riku's mouth dropped open. "How did you know?"

"There's, just something about you, I get this feeling whenever you're around, like now, and sometimes I get it when I can't see you. And what you just said kinda helps too." She giggled at him as he shut his mouth and stared at her through the blindfold. Then he started to laugh.

He didn't make a habit of laughing; there wasn't anything to laugh about. But Xion made him laugh like he had back before everything went crazy. "So you have, like a 6th sense?"

"I guess so. So you have been." She looked back over the town. A contented look on her face. As much as Riku enjoyed being with her, just sitting like this drove him crazy. He wanted to keep her. He wanted to take her away from the Organization, away from Twilight Town. He wouldn't even take her to DiZ. They'd run. He'd take her back to Destiny Islands.

_She'd like it there. And she could wear something besides these awful cloaks. She wouldn't have to come back here. Everything would be perfect. _Suddenly a sharp thought entered his head. Namine's voice.

_If you take her away, Sora will never wake up. And she would have his memories for forever. Do you want that? You have to choose Riku, Xion or Sora?_

"Riku, are you okay?" Xion's voice brought him back the tower.

He shook himself. "Yeah, I was just thinking." He wanted to stay like this forever, just her and him.

Xion reached out her hand touched his arm and an electric shock ran up his arm. "About Sora?"

"Yes. I wish he would wake up." He reached out an arm and slowly, without even thinking about it, slipped it around Xion, drawing her close. He smiled when she tensed up a bit, then leaned into his side. She looked up into his blindfolded eyes.

"Riku…I'm going to talk to Namine again." He nodded, remembering Namine mentioning she had come by to ask questions.

"Do you want me to come with you?" he wanted to stay near her as much as possible.

"No, this is something I must do on my own." If he had been looking at her, he would have seen the single tear through his blindfold. "I have to go know."

He sighed as he stood up and pulled her to him. They wrapped their arms around each other. "Be careful. That red head seems to always find you. It wouldn't do to have him find you around the mansion." Xion laughed.

"Worried about me" she teased. They laughed together then she opened a dark portal and disappeared.

_Xion, you have no idea. _

Riku spent the next few hours just wandering aimlessly. Why did he have such a bad feeling? And what did Namine's voice mean that he would have to choose? Why should he choose? Xion would give up Sora's memories then it would all be over. She wasn't a true Nobody, so why should she have to go back there? She'd be free, Sora would wake up and all three of them would go back to Destiny Islands. If any Organization member came to take Xion away, he'd be there to stop them.

Soon he realized he was at the gates of the mansion. He decided that Xion should have visited and left by now. He opened the gates and walked inside. Climbing the steps up to Namine's room, he smiled. He would get to keep both of them. He knocked on Namine's door.

"Come in," came a soft voice. He opened the door. Even though his blindfold, he could tell the room was almost blinding white. A petite girl with white-blonde hair sat at the end of a table. "Hello Riku. I was expecting you."

"Has Xion come by here? She said she would." He sat down.

"Yes…she has decided to give her memories to Sora." The girl looked down at her sketch pad uneasily.

"That's great! How soon will Sora wake up? Today? Tomorrow?" Riku was wild with excitement as he stood up and began walking around the room. "This is wonderful! Then we can go home! And Xion can come too. She doesn't belong with the Organization. She and Kairi will be wonderful friends! And you," he walked over to Namine and took her hand. "You can come too. Leave here with us. You and Kairi and Xion will get along great I know it. We'll show you our island and everything!" He flashed a rare smile and suddenly he was a little boy again. This was one of the first things he had to be happy about.

Namine smiled sadly. She had never seen the silver-haired boy like this before. "Riku," he stopped mid-sentence. "You really care for Xion don't you?" She could feel his steady gaze from behind the mask.

"Yes. She means so much to me. I think, I think I love her." At his own words, he stopped and thought. He thought of Xion smiling up at him and he knew. A smile lit up his face. "I love her!" He noticed Namine's face. "Why?" Something was wrong. She got that look when he asked her how Sora was and there wasn't good news. He walked closer to her, "what's…wrong?"

"Riku, Xion decided to give herself up to Sora in the easiest way possible." Seeing his puzzled face, she handed him a note. "Here, she left this for you."

He slowly unfolded the paper.

_Dear Riku,_

_I know you must miss you friend. I would miss my friends too and would do the same thing as you to help them. Talking to you and Namine, I realized what I have to do. Being made up of Sora's memories, I have to give myself to him. Namine said that there was only one sure way for it to work right. I have to willingly give myself. When I do, all his memories will be loosed, but, it will destroy me. It's easiest if I do it in a fight, so I don't really think about it. Please forgive me for not telling you this, but I knew, that if I said goodbye to you, I wouldn't have the will to do what must be done. _

_I think I love you Riku. _

_Its hard to know for sure, since I don't have feelings, but when I'm with you, I can believe that I have a heart._

_If I said goodbye, I'd want to stay with you, but I can't. I have to be whole. Namine also said that you and everyone else would forget me. So really, there's no reason to say goodbye. There's not much left to say, but I hope that this helps Sora. _

_Goodbye Riku. If I could love, I would._

_Xion_

Riku just stood there. He couldn't move. This is what they had meant, Sora or Xion. Only one would be allowed to live. Without looking up, he spoke.

"Where is she." It wasn't a question. It was a demand.

"I don't know. She didn't say where she was going."

"She mentioned this was the only way that would be sure to work, there's another way?"

Namine sighed. "Yes, but I'm not sure if it would work or not-"

"Then why must she do this? There's another way! She doesn't have to…to" his voice broke.

Namine's quiet voice broke the silence. "The only other way is for me to remove them, but because most of what she is made of are Sora's memories, it might destroy her anyway. She made her choice."

"NO! She can't! She can't!" Riku ran out of the room, out of the mansion. He kept running, he had to find her. There was another way, there was a chance. He ran to the tower. Why he didn't just open a portal he'll never remember. Maybe, because he felt like he had to go through some physical pain. Reaching the top, he looked around.

She wasn't there.

Looking down, he saw two black clothed figures fighting below him.

_Xion._

It had to be her. He ran back down and into the square just in time to see her fall and the blonde boy she was fighting catch her. Riku couldn't move. As he watched them, he felt her life draining away. After a few minuets, she seemed to turn to glass, then she shattered and the pieces of her flew into the air.

_NO! _The voice in his head screamed but no sound came out of his mouth. He turned and ran back through the town, tears soaking the blindfold. She was gone. Sora would wake up, at her sacrifice. And he, Riku, felt as if his heart had also been shattered, like her body. He ran back to the mansion, only stopping to open gates and doors. Reaching Namine's room, he burst in and startled the pale girl.

"Why!" He demanded. "WHY?" He stormed over to her chair and started shaking it, screaming at the top of his lungs. "DIDN'T YOU TELL HER THERE WAS ANOTHER WAY? SHE DIDN'T HAVE TO DIE! WHY NAMINE? WHY?"

With the final why, he staggered backwards to the wall and fell against it, sliding down till he was sitting on the floor. He buried his head in his arms. Namine's heart went out to the poor, broken boy. She got up and walked over and sat next to him, placing her hands on his.

"She made her own choice. She knew that she probably wouldn't survive the other way. This is what she wanted. If my guess is correct, when she died," Riku's body heaved as she spoke the word. "She felt nothing. She was peaceful."

Riku didn't look at her. "She knew that you would forget her after all this. Because, I...I have to remove every memory of her. I'm sorry Riku, but you won't remember anything about her." The tears leaked through the mask. Her own eyes watered at the pain she was causing him.

"I don't want to forget. Please Namine, let me at lest remember her name."

"I'm sorry, I can't." He leaned back against the wall.

"There's no way then."

"No. I'm truly sorry Riku."

He sighed and gained control of his voice. "When will Sora wake up?"

"Well, the blonde Organization member, number XIII, he's Sora's Nobody. He's needed to wake him up."

_All that, and Sora won't even wake up right away. _"So I have to go ruin more lives."

"Well, for Sora. We need him back."

Riku stood up. "I'm sorry for scaring you. When will you take my memories?"

Namine sighed. "It's all right, I understand. I won't take her memories, she'll just, start to fade."

He showed no emotion on his face. "Namine, will I never remember her?"

"I only take apart the links, but the memories are still there. You said you loved her." He nodded. "If you really do, and she is your light, then she will never leave you. When you find her in yourself, who knows? Maybe, she'll come back." She smiled encouragingly.

_If I remember. Xion, I will remember you. After everything is over and done. I will remember. _"I'm going for a walk." The silver haired teen walked out of the room.

Namine sighed, and then began to work.

Riku watched Sora and Kairi walk along the beach. _It's all over. _He and Sora had done it. They had gotten back to their Island and continued on with life. But something was missing. Riku couldn't put his finger on it, but something was wrong. He just couldn't explain what it was. Something important that he knew he wanted to remember, but it was just a shadow in a corner of his mind he couldn't reach.

He sighed as he watched his friends. Only people who knew what to look for saw what he was seeing. Four figures were walking along. It was just possible to see the other two in the fading light. A boy and a girl, somewhat attached to their counterparts, but at the same time separate. Roxas and Namine were slowly following their other selves as they walked across the beach. Suddenly, Namine stopped. Riku could tell that it was a struggle for her to not follow Kairi, but she looked at him with an intent expression on her pale, shimmering face.

Her voice echoed through his head. _Remember Riku, remember_. With that, she turned and seemed snapped back to Kairi's body.

_Remember what, Namine? I can't remember what it is I've forgotten. _He tired thinking back on what had happened in the past few years. Nothing really stood out.

His mind wandered to Twilight Town. Then he realized that some of the memories there were, slightly fuzzy. _Wait; there is something, Something's missing..._ He thought back over his experiences there. They weren't really happy ones. Sora's endless sleep, fighting Organization members, worrying about everything, and…one fuzzy memory that was just out of his reach. He allowed his mind to wander to it. What was it? He closed his eyes and concentrated.

It began to take a shape in his head. A small figure stood before him. The only thing he was able to see though, was a pair of striking violet-blue eyes. He sighed. _Kairi, its just Kairi's eyes._

_Look again Riku. Try to remember. _Namine's voice drifted to him again.

_Namine, its just Kairi-_ he broke off his mind contact. _No, it's not Kairi…but who?_

He focused on the shadow, trying to get it to come into focus. It was a girl, he could see that now. She was wearing something long…_a cloak! Its one of those Organization cloaks! But, the only girl was a blonde. Who's this? Organization XIII, Roxas was the last member though. Wait! _The girl appeared again. _XIV! There we're 14 members! How could I forget? But who…_

Memories. More memories then he thought possible came rushing into his mind.

Meeting a girl on the Island…

Fighting her…

DiZ saying not to care for Nobodys…

Sitting on the clock tower in Twilight Town…

Following someone…

The girl stood in his memories, smiling at him, like she was waiting for him to remember her.

Sitting in a white room with Namine next to him.

_"If she is your light…"_

_My light…_

Suddenly the girl came into complete focus. Riku opened his eyes.

"Xion." He stared at the sky and formed the word again. "Xion."

He remembered. Her laugh, her smile, and the way he felt around her, the way she died. He looked down the beach to the retreating figure of Sora. _He'll never know what she did for him. _

He leaned back and looked at the sky, smiling to himself, when something caught his attention. What at first appeared to be a shooting star was falling _down_! Not across the sky like you would think. He stood up and walked down the edge of the water. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Sora, Kairi and the faint outline of their counterparts running towards him.

The star kept falling until its hit the water with a splash close to where they were standing. Kairi gasped beams of light followed the path of the fallen star. Riku took a few steps into the water.

Suddenly, something broke the surface and started to struggle staying above the water.

"It's a person! Sora, Riku it's a person!" But Riku never heard Kairi's statement. He was already swimming out to save the person. Sora ran into the water to help his friend as Kairi waited nervously. After a few minuets, they came back holding a black-haired girl's head above the water. As soon as he could touch the bottom, Riku picked her up and carried her to the beach.

Both boys we're panting heavily as Riku set her down. Sora stood by Kairi as Riku held up the girls head. "Xion" he whispered. "Xion please wake up!" Her chest was moving slightly, her eyes remained closed. "Xion please," he begged quietly. "I'm not going to lose you again." Sora and Kairi kneeled by the two others as they waited for something to happen. Namine's hand gripped Roxas' and would have broken it if they were solid. Then, Xion took a deep breath and opened her eyes.

Riku's green-blue eyes widened as her own violet blue ones opened. She reached a hand up and placed it on the side of his face. She smiled. "Riku."

Riku pulled her up into a hug, whispering her name over and over. Sora leaned over to Kairi and started to say something, but was stopped as she slapped her hand over his mouth. Riku released her after a moment and looked over her.

She looked a little different. Her hair was the same, but her eyes were deeper, wiser. Instead of wearing her old Organization cloak, she was wearing a short black dress with a hood and had a pinkish glow to her face.

Riku and Xion didn't seem to realize that the others were there. Riku touched her face again. "Are you real? Your not, a memory?"

She frail girl smiled up at him. "I only have memories of myself and memories of the memories of Sora, if that makes sense. So yes, I think I am real."

With that, Riku swept her up bridal style and spun her around. Kairi and Sora laughed to see their friend like this. The hazy figures of Roxas and Namine smiled at them. Seeing Roxas, Xion's face turned slightly sad. She tapped Riku's shoulder and he set her down.

"Roxas, do you…remember me?"

"No, but I feel as if I should."

Namine took his hand. "I'll explain later." The others nodded and Kairi spoke up.

"So, Xion, I assume you don't have a place to stay. You can stay with me if you like."

"Thank you, I'd like that very much."

Namine looked at Riku and smiled. "I told you so, if she was your light."

Riku smiled at the pale girl and wrapped his arms around Xion.

Kairi grabbed Sora's arm. "Uh, we'll go on ahead and get a bed ready for you Xion."

Sora whined "but why?"

"Lets go!" she yanked his arm ran off dragging him behind her.

Xion giggled, "So that's Sora. Nice to know my life saved a dork life like his."

Riku threw back his head and let out a laugh. "He kinda grows on you after awhile. He's my best friend after all."

"Then if you like him, I will too."

"You kinda have to, you were originally from him."

She made a sour face. "Don't ever remind. I don't want to remember myself as someone else. I want to be just, me."

Riku tipped her face up to look at him. "That's all I'll ever ask of you. Just promise me one thing. Don't ever go and get yourself killed again."

Xion laughed her tinkling laugh and buried her head in his chest as she clung to his shirt. "I promise. But, you promise me something. Never leave me Riku, no matter what happens. I don't want to be away from you ever again."

Riku took her head and leaned it up to face him. "Don't worry, I won't." with that, he leaned in and kissed her.


End file.
